Lombard launches EV salary sacrifice solution

Lombard, the UK’s largest asset finance provider, is set to rev up the motor finance market with a new leasing offering for electric and plug in hybrid vehicles.

Through Lombard’s salary sacrifice scheme for businesses, drivers who are higher rate taxpayers may save on average 43% of the cost of leasing a brand new EV. This means a driver sacrificing £600 a month from their gross salary towards their car, could save £288 on their brand-new EV, compared to if they had paid for it out of their net salary.

Salary sacrifice schemes have become a popular option for businesses seeking to offer a great employee benefit whilst working to reduce the carbon emissions from their employees’ travel and commuting. In a recent survey by the BVRLA, approximately 80% of surveyed businesses said it was ‘likely or very likely’ that they would introduce a salary sacrifice car scheme.

Providing an all-in-one solution for businesses with over 250 eligible employees, Lombard’s digital interface and customer support makes it easy for businesses and their employees to get started. Businesses can use a free EV Planner tool which helps them to understand the EV readiness of their employee vehicles, signposts which cars can be transitioned, and what charging infrastructure is required.

Through Lombard’s digital interface, our customers’ employees can browse the latest car models, choose their vehicle and select the payment terms and mileage to suit their needs. Employees can use the car for work or personal use, add an additional driver, and pay one fixed monthly cost which covers maintenance, insurance, road tax, and more. Drivers can choose to add a home charge point to their order, and pay for this through salary sacrifice, spreading the cost over the term of the lease.

Stuart Clark, Head of Climate Transition at Lombard, said: “Electric vehicles are transforming our roads. It’s easy to see why – they are cheaper to run and tailpipe emission-free. But if we are truly to benefit from the electric revolution, we need to make EVs more accessible.

“Like cycle to work but for cars, having the option to lease an EV is a hugely attractive benefit for employees, who could save hundreds of pounds every month through our salary sacrifice scheme. There are no set-up costs for businesses, making it easy for them to provide a great employee benefit, while also potentially helping to reduce their carbon emissions from their employees’ business travel and commuting.”

Lombard’s salary sacrifice offering has been developed in partnership with ALD Automotive | LeasePlan, one of the world’s leading fleet management and mobility companies.

Leon McMahon, Head of Retail Partnerships at ALD Automotive | Leaseplan UK said: “The partnership between Lombard and ALD Automotive | LeasePlan is key in aiding businesses navigate the challenging journey toward net zero. Leveraging Lombard’s market presence and the technological backing of ALD Automotive | LeasePlan, the partnership provides a complete range of fleet services, with market leading products such as contract hire, Flex and our award winning TCO+.

“Now a key innovation for this partnership is the Lombard EV Salary Sacrifice Scheme, a fully digital product, backed by the power and scale of the partnership, providing solutions for drivers to get into the driving seat of new electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle.”